Battle of Toulon (1744)

Infobox Military Conflict
conflict=Battle of Toulon


caption=The "Battle of Toulon" by José Manuel de Moraleda. Watercolour on paper, 1783.
partof=the War of the Austrian Succession
date=February 22 1744
place=Mediterranean Sea, near Toulon, France
result=Indecisive;
Strategic Franco-Spanish victory
combatant1=flagicon|Spain|1701 Spain
flagicon|France|restauration [George Ripley, Charles Anderson Dana, "The American Cyclopaedia", New York, 1874, p. 250, "...the standard of France was white, sprinkled with golden fleur de lis...". * [http://www.anyflag.com/history/fleur23.htm] The original Banner of France was strewn with fleurs-de-lis. * [http://digitalgallery.nypl.org/nypldigital/dgdisplaylargemeta.cfm?strucID=585779&imageID=1236061&parent_id=585395&word=&s=&notword=&d=&c=&f=&sScope=&sLevel=&sLabel=&lword=&lfield=&num=0&imgs=12&total=98&pos=1&snum=] :on the reverse of this plate it says: "Le pavillon royal était véritablement le drapeau national au dix-huitième siecle...Vue du chateau d'arrière d'un vaisseau de guerre de haut rang portant le pavillon royal (blanc, avec les armes de France)." [http://www.1911encyclopedia.org/Flag] from the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica: "The oriflamme and the Chape de St Martin were succeeded at the end of the 16th century, when Henry III., the last of the house of Valois, came to the throne, by the white standard powdered with fleurs-de-lis. This in turn gave place to the famous tricolour."] France
combatant2=flagicon|United Kingdom|1606 Great Britain
commander1=Juan José Navarro
commander2=Thomas Mathews,
Richard Lestock,
William Rowley
strength1=27 ships of the line,
3 frigates,
3 others,
(1,806 guns)
strength2=30 ships of the line,
3 frigates,
6 others,
(2,280 guns)
casualties1=149 dead,
467 wounded,
6 ships damagedCarlos Martínez-Valverde, "La campaña de don Juan José Navarro en el Mediterráneo y la batalla de Sicié (1742-1744)."]
casualties2=~800 dead or wounded,
10 ships damaged,
1 ship sunk|

The naval Battle of Toulon or Battle of Cape Sicié took place on February 22 and 23 February 1744 (New Style) between 1:30 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Toulon, France (Cape Sicié is near Toulon). A Spanish convoy defeated Britain's Mediterranean fleet.The French fleet only went to battle at the end of this, when the British fleet retreated.

Engagement

On 22 February, 30 British ships under Thomas Mathews attacked the Spanish rear of a French-Spanish combined fleet of 27 ships, while the French center and vanguard kept apart from the combat. Mathews had been following the French fleet in case either side declared war on the other as part of the War of the Austrian Succession. The 12 Spanish ships were under command of Don Juan José Navarro. At 5:00 p.m., both sides drew away from each other. They attacked each other from afar the next day, but the British suffered heavily, and the French ships approached to help theirs Spanish allies, forcing the British to withdraw. Finally, on 24 February, Mathews retreated to Italy.

Mathews' second in command, Vice Admiral Richard Lestock, later petitioned King George II of Great Britain to hold a court-martial against many of the British officers, including Mathews. Mathews and several other officers were dismissed from the Royal Navy.

Order of Battle

France and Spain

Van
"Boree" 64
"Tolosa" 60
"Tigre" 50
"Eole" 64
"Alcion" 56
"Duc d'Orleans" 68
"Espoir" 74 (flag of de Gavaret)
Center
"Trident" 64
"Heureux" 60
"Aquilon" 44
"Sólide" 64
"Diamant" 50
"Firme" 70
"Terrible" 74 (flag)
"Sancti Spiritus" 68
"Serieux" 64
Rear
"Oriente"* 60
"América"* 60
"Neptuno"* 60
"Poder"* 60 - Damaged and captured but recaptured, scuttled next day
"Constante"* 70
"Real Felipe"* 114 (flag of Juan José Navarro)
"Hércules"* 64
"Brillante"* 60
"Halcón"* 60
"San Fernando"* 64
"Soberbio"* 60
"Santa Isabel"* 80
3 frigates
2 brulotes
1 battleship being used as a hospital ship

Ships marked * were Spanish.

Britain (Thomas Mathews)

Van
"Chatham" 50
"Nassau" 70
"Chichester" 80
"Boyne" 80
"Barfleur" 90 (flag of Rowley)
"Princess Carolina" 80
"Berwick" 70
"Stirling Castle" 70
"Bedford" 70
Center
"Dragon" 60
"Royal Oak" 70
"Princess" 70
"Somerset" 80
"Norfolk" 80
"Marlborough" 90
"Dorsetshire" 80
"Essex" 70 (Richard Norris)
"Rupert" 60
"Namur" 90 (flag)
Rear
"Salisbury" 50
"Romney" 50
"Dumkint"? 60
"Revenge" 70
"Cambridge" 80
"Neptune" 90 (flag of Lestock)
"Torbay" 80
"Russell" 80
"Buckingham" 70
"Elizabeth" 70
"Kingston" 60
"Oxford" 50
"Warwick" 60
3 frigates
3 brulotes
3 bergantines (brigantines?)

Notes

External links

* [http://32.1911encyclopedia.org/T/TO/TOULON.htm The 1911 Encyclopedia]
* [http://www.todoababor.es/articulos/sicie.htm La campaña de don Juan José Navarro en el Mediterráneo y la batalla de Sicié (1742-1744)]